Ready for Boise State football? Don’t forget this week’s odd kickoff time, day

BOISE (Idaho Statesman) — If you’re planning on watching Boise State’s season opener against South Florida, remember to put aside some time this week.

On Thursday.

Boise State will take a cross-country trip to Tampa to kick off its 2025 season, and that kickoff is at 3:30 p.m. Mountain time — 5:30 p.m. local time.

The game will air on ESPN, giving the Broncos a national audience as the college football season begins in earnest.

This will be the fifth straight season that Boise State opens on the road, and the third time in five years it opens on an ESPN network.

The game will mark the first meeting between Boise State and USF, but the Broncos have experience being in the Sunshine State to usher in a new season.

It happened in 2019, when they beat Florida State 36-31 in Tallahassee, and again in 2021, when they lost by the same score to UCF.

ESPN Bet has Boise State as roughly a touchdown favorite against South Florida, with the opening line being 6.5 points.

The Thursday afternoon game is all part of an odd start to the season for the Broncos. Their home opener is on a Friday night, Sept. 5, against Eastern Washington, and that’s followed by the first bye week of the year. Boise State will finally play a Saturday game on Sept. 20, on the road at Air Force, with kickoff at 5 p.m. Mountain time.

The first Saturday home game of the season will happen on Sept. 27 against App State, but a kickoff time has not been set yet.

Boise State at South Florida

When: 3:30 p.m. Mountain time Thursday

Where: Raymond James Stadium (75,000, grass), Tampa, Florida

TV: ESPN

Radio: KBOI 670 AM/KTIK 93.1 FM (Bob Behler, Pete Cavender)

Records: Boise State 12-2 last year; South Florida 7-6.

Series: First meeting between the two teams.

Vegas line: Boise State by 6.5

Weather: 91 degrees, partly cloudy, 24% chance of rain